Charlotte messenger. [volume] (Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., N.C.) 1882-18??, 1887-11-12


seriousness, but did not let go of his float
He remembered nothing of the next day
until about an hour before sundown,
when he opened his eyes and came to
his senses to find himself lying on the
sands, his float near by, and the storm
cleared away. He was stiff ana sore and
bewildcrcd, and he crawled further up
the shore and went to s,eep again, and it
was sunrise before he again opened his
eyes. An hour later he knew that he
was on an island about three miles long
by ono mile wide. 1t was we'll wooded,
containing several springs of fresh water,
and there was an abundance of wild
fruits to sustain life. There was not an
lnhabitant or sign of one. nor did he find
any living thing except birds and mon
keys.
Whea.o on was not onlya good seaman,
but well educated and well posted man,
and he had sailed on the Pacific for many
years. There was hardly an island in that
ocean which he had not set foot on and
could recognize by sight again.
Aftcra bit he began to figure on his loca-
tlon, and he made out that ne had been
driven ashore on an unknown and unchart-
ed island lying very close to the equa-
tor, and in longitude 120 degrees west.
This put him midway, on northeast and
southwest line, between the Marquesas
group and the Galapagos Islands. He
had visited both groups, and as both
were inhabited at that time he could not
have been mistaken in his location had he
gone ashore on any one of them. He
found proofs satisfactory to himself that
the island was of volcanic origin, not
over twelve or fifteen years old, and that
the luxuriaat vegetation was due to tho
tropical climate. The birds, of whit h
there were several species, could perhaps
have flown there from some of the other
Islands, but how the monkeys reached
the spot was puzzler the Captain never
got over. That he found 'em there was
proved when he was rescued, there being
TWO pet animals on the raft.
When the castaway came to walk
around his island he found the wreck of
the Scotch brig Mcneil on the east shore,
and the wreck of the California ship
had been reported lost with all on board
two or three years before. The one was
whaler and the other trader The Captain
not only said he found them, but he had
proof again. He had the name board of
the ship and some papers belonging to
the brig. He found and buried the
skeletons of thirteen sailors. and among
the debris of the wrecks he secured q
large quantity of clothing, considerable
money, some bedding a lot of tools,
ropes, boards, and planks, and within a
week he began the work of building a
boat to enable him TO escape.
always felt that the old man must
have had jolly life Of it for the ten
months and over he was on what he
called "Wheaton's Island" but he dweit
on the fact that it was terribly lonely.
1t went harder with him, because he had
wife and six children, and he knew
that they would be mourning his death.
He put in two months on his boat, and
had just got her finished when storm
yet in and she broke her moorings and
drifted out to sea. Anxiety and expos
ure. aided by the worry about the folks
at home, laid tho old man on his back for
several weeks, and he probably had a
close call from slipping his cables. He
got up slowly, and as he had been waste.
full with his materials. he found that he
must turn to a raft if he ever got away
He worked at it at odd hours, being i'll
and Respondent. for several months, and
when it was finished he hesitated full
month before making start, hoping
every day to sight sail. He had sig
nal flying by day, and almost every night
he kept a fire going, but rescue never
came.
One day, two weeks before he set out
IN his voyage, the Captain made great
discovery. In rough, wild place, in
the center of the island. where a mass of
rock was thrown up in great confusion,
he found lump of gold as big as your
fist. Ayel more than that, he found
masses of it so heavy that he could not
lift them. These chunks, he said, were
as pure as his big nugget, and that not
only held in my hand, but saw the certifi-
cate of assay reading that it was 81 per
cent pure gold. lie sold it at the mint
in San Francisco for over $l2, 900, and
that in my presence. In the course of
three or four days the Captain piled up
such heap of gold on his island that he
dared not estimate its value. There was
enough to make dozen men rich for
life, and more TO be had with picks
and iron bars. Then the demon of ava
rice would not let him wait any longer for
rescue Indeed, he did not want TO be
rescued. lie made his raft ready, cut
branches and pulled grass to hide his
nuggets, and set sail with fair wind to
the northeast. hoping to get into the
track of ships bound for the Sandwich
Islands. He was picked up as l have
told you, but he found tough nut in
the English Captain. He had to believe
that Captain Wheaton had left some ISL
and not far away, for there was the man
and there was the raft He couldn't have
made himself believe that the island was
one of the group TO the east or west, but
yet he wouldn't believe in nearer island
because it wasn't charted. He simply
jumped to the conclusion that the cast
away had suffered and endured until his
mind was off its balance This was nat
ural enough in one sense, but when
Wheaton came TO show him the relics
from the two wrecks, and when the two
..,o,,lovo xuoro oLtnntpo about on 6ook